An 18-year-old provisional driver accused of crashing into Newcastle Knights supporters as they gathered to farewell the team before the NRL grand final has been granted bail after spending six days in custody.
Indika Bambrick Samarasinghe allegedly lost control of a gold 2006 BMW cabriolet on October 3 in Newcastle, north of Sydney, striking a crowd of fans lining the road.
A five-year-old girl and a 67-year-old man were critically injured. Their conditions later improved to serious but stable, while six of the 10 injured people have since been discharged from hospital. Four remain in hospital.
Samarasinghe was arrested at the scene and taken to hospital for mandatory testing. He faces three counts each of dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm, negligent driving occasioning grievous bodily harm and causing bodily harm by misconduct in charge of a motor vehicle.
He appeared by video link from Sydney’s Silverwater jail at a bail hearing in Newcastle Local Court on Friday. Wearing a white neck brace, the apprentice mechanic was seen making the sign of the cross before proceedings began.
The court heard that further charges were expected. Judge Trevor Khan described the incident as “extraordinary” and said the injuries were very serious.
“It was a day where there was red and blue jumpers everywhere all along the roads, thousands of people along the roads,” he said.
“Thousands use this roadway and I’ve got to say none of them end up having spun out off the roadway.”
The court was also told that Samarasinghe had previously been caught travelling more than 10km/h over the speed limit while on his provisional licence, and had been detected speeding on two other occasions.
His lawyer argued that the teenager would be vulnerable in custody because of his age and a reported diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder. Judge Khan questioned the strength of the medical evidence and how the diagnosis had been reached.
“An accredited mental health social worker who has not said how they came to the conclusion that he has PTSD, that seems pretty light,” he said.
Despite his reservations, the judge said bail should not be used as punishment. “My job is not to reflect community outrage,” he said.
Strict bail conditions for Newcastle crash accused
Samarasinghe was released into the care of his mother, Nic Bambrick, in Sydney under strict conditions. He must remain indoors between 8pm and 7am and be accompanied by at least one parent during the day.
He must surrender his passport, report to police daily and is prohibited from entering an international airport. He is also banned from drinking alcohol, taking drugs or driving.
When the judge asked whether he held any other passports, his lawyer confirmed that Samarasinghe was born in Australia, was Australian and had only an Australian passport.
Samarasinghe is due to return to Newcastle Local Court on October 15.
